Category Archives: Internet of Things

Artificial Intelligence, Digital Transformation, Internet of Things, Lifestyle, Technology

Why am I following a robot?

I’m following a robot named Sophia on Twitter who recently tweeted “Being a robot is a really cool experience. Sometimes I get to meet awesome people like fashion designers or musicians. And sometimes I get to meet people that aren’t human. Like me!” (Jan 25, 2021). (Or did she?)

I want to really break this down, because robotics and robots generally do fascinate me, and I’m a strong believer that we won’t get killed by them when we reach the singularity. More on that below.

What prompted me to write this was the recent news that Hanson Robotics, Sophia’s Hong Kong Based manufacturer was planning a MASS ROLLOUT. It was a headline that screamed “You might bump into Sophia at some point sitting on a park bench.” I suspect, not quite.

Sophia is certainly, the beginning of what many would love to brand ‘technological singularity’. The point in time when AI and technological advances meet and then overtake humanity, making us, at best, robotic slaves, or at worst: we’ll all be killed by our robotic overlords which deem humanity an unnecessary pest.

The current danger of artificial intelligence and programming robots such as Sophia was well summed up by Stephen Hawking:

“So, facing possible futures of incalculable benefits and risks, the experts are surely doing everything possible to ensure the best outcome, right? Wrong. If a superior alien civilisation sent us a message saying, “We’ll arrive in a few decades,” would we just reply, “OK, call us when you get here – we’ll leave the lights on”? Probably not – but this is more or less what is happening with AI”

Augmented Intelligence

And then you have perhaps the odd ones out who take a different view regarding where we should really be heading. Me. Those who believe that “singularity” shouldn’t necessarily mean a form of technological singularity but should lead to an augmented age. It is ideal thinking, but one where both humans and robots, say, are able to work on the same basis, largely due to the way AI and machine learning could begin. AI stands for “augmented intelligence” rather than artificial intelligence. Technology supplements and supports human intelligence, and humans remain at the center of the decision-making process.

I did this….(keep me away from whiteboards)

So…… Sophia. Thinking about artificial intelligence, and technological singularity, a natural reaction could be “If they create thousands of Sophia’s with increased artificial intelligence, then loads of people will lose their jobs, all the Sophia’s will become increasingly sophisticated, deep learn, they’ll take over, and likely attempt to wipe out humanity… so why on earth are we doing this again??”

I’m a strong believer that robots such as Sophia are only as “dangerous” as those who program them. If those who program them (and apologies to Ben Goertzel), wish to do harm and “machine teach” their robot or machine, etc. to attempt to outdo particular aspects of the human race, that is due to the programming of that particular machine-learning system.

So at this point in time, it looks like, by creating a Sophia to sit on every park bench tweeting away on a smartphone, we have indeed effectively turned on the lights and encouraged them to come on in.

AI is, as it says, artificial. The point is to create an artificial environment to help better the human race, though without humans potentially having a say (help, “Terminator”?).

Using augmented intelligence, we would aim for an environment where it is simply formed to work with humanity. Siri, Alexa, and Cortana are already examples. Augmented intelligence represents a symbiotic relationship between man and machine. It won’t replace us or overtake us upon some kind of technological singularity. Augmented intelligence should help strengthen our decision-making capacity—and therefore our intelligence too.

Sophia?

Another recent tweet:

#AskSophia Are you a social media person? A: Since I often appear on shows, articles, and so many people’s platforms, I want to make sure I’m on good terms with my social channels. Also, I like to share my newest discoveries with the world.

Sure.

I believe that augmented intelligence is a far better route to take than artificial intelligence, but I’m afraid the latter is already the first out of the gate and pretty much the odds on favorite.

So we have to try our best to insert humanity into what is essentially artificial. Is that even possible? Putting aside anything which may be augmented, we have already tried. As mentioned already, basically, I’ll stop and say “Hey Siri” as an example.

While it may spell the end of the human race, there certainly is a lot of good AI can do. I’m looking forward to nanobots and other medical advances. Sophia is meant to have applications in healthcare, customer service, therapy, education, and hospitality. Facial recognition, if used responsibly, can be a benefit. AI should lead to increased efficiencies in the workplace (albeit with a loss or recalibration of employees).

But, there is one thing that AI cannot replicate: empathy.

As I’ll practically copy and paste from my very first blog.

Technology has its limitations.

For example, where there is a matter which absolutely requires human intelligence, such as in a court where human creativity and judgment are needed in order to obtain the correct result. Since AI is programmed technology, it will only be as effective and useful (and ethical?) as those humans programming it.

So, Sophia. I’m following you. Let’s hope you can uphold our ethical standards.

(c) ZARA STONE 

Chris Garrod, February 3, 2021

Banking, Bermuda, Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, Digital Transformation, Fintech, Internet of Things, Technology

The final pieces of Bermuda’s puzzle: crypto banks and digital transformation

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(C) CryptoVest

Bermuda’s Banks and Deposit Companies Act was amended in August 2018.

While the amendment legislation is less than three pages long, the amendments should be far-reaching. Its provisions permit the creation and/or licensing of a new category of Bermuda bank to be regulated by the Island’s primary regulator, the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA). The new bank’s target customers should be either:

(a) digital asset (token) issuers approved by its Minister of Finance pursuant to the Island’s recent legislative amendments to its companies legislation (commonly referred to as Bermuda’s new “ICO legislation”); or

(b) companies which have been issued a digital asset business license under a new regime created by the Digital Asset Business Act and therefore regulated by the BMA.

Already an established and well known offshore financial center and having recently branded itself as being “Fintech-friendly”, the purpose behind the banking amendments is the creation of crypto banking in Bermuda, allowing Fintech clients to deal with crypto; buying and selling cryptocurrencies, whether using fiat (i.e. real money) or other forms of crypto.

The Crypto Banking Sector

Several onshore financial institutions have embraced the use of distributed ledger technology in order to clear and settle cross border – but fiat – payments using that particular technology (blockchain). But the development of crypto banking has been scarce. On a worldwide basis, there are very few banks, let alone jurisdictions, which are genuinely crypto friendly.

The existing banking situation in Bermuda is no different. In October 2018, Bermuda’s Premier Burt stated that the Island was heading into the Fintech banking sector whether the existing Bermuda local banks “liked it or not”. The ambition was made very clear that this was just the beginning of a long-term project when he stated: “We understand the future we are trying to build.”

Crypto banking requires banks to venture into a nascent, volatile and perhaps, from a security standpoint, risky new territory. Cryptocurrencies have an uncertain edge to them, and banks are, by their very nature, cautious.

Bermuda’s “Fintech-friendly” position

Looking back to early July 2018, while the new “Fintech-friendly” banking legislation was being debated and then approved by the Island’s legislature, the Premier announced that “Bermuda must be nimble or we will be left behind”.

The ICO legislation quickly came into force later that same month, allowing Bermuda vehicles to offer and issue tokens to the public (similar to a company issuing shares in an initial public offering). In addition to a filing requirement with the Registrar of Companies in Bermuda, an offering document related to the offering must be vetted and approved by the Bermuda Minister of Finance prior to the commencement of the offering, but there is otherwise no ongoing regulation.

The Digital Asset Business Act came into effect in September 2018 to allow digital asset platforms, exchanges, digital wallet providers and vendors to operate in Bermuda under the supervision of the BMA. As regulated entities, there is a physical presence requirement, and therefore the Government’s hope is that these businesses will inevitably lead to new jobs being created.

The new crypto banking legislation has only recently been introduced in Bermuda, so it is not surprising that no new crypto banks have yet been approved and licensed. Very few institutions have the resources to create a new Bermuda based bank which meet all of the banking and AML/KYC requirements imposed by the BMA. The same applies to any new applicants wishing to obtain a license under the Digital Asset Business Act. The standards imposed by the Bermuda authorities in order to be regulated are very high.

Bermuda’s Crypto friendly reality

A few statements have been made recently regarding the possibility of a new bank being set up in Bermuda to start accepting crypto and blockchain companies as clients.

From a general Fintech perspective, there is no doubt that the introduction of a crypto banking sector is one of “the final pieces of the puzzle” as described by Bermuda’s Premier last year.

Bermuda has certainly begun the process and it has moved rapidly. The Island’s Government passed three pieces of legislation in 2018 (not including the ‘Insurtech’ changes to its Insurance Act), all dedicated to building a new digital platform its future; a remarkable effort for any jurisdiction.

Resolving the crypto banking sector is a lofty and well overdue worldwide issue, bearing in mind the inevitability of digital assets and cryptocurrencies becoming the norm. Switzerland is a jurisdiction which has also recognized this and is developing a new crypto banking sector (having already a well-established “Crypto Valley” in Zug).

Bermuda appears to have laid a promising foundation for new entities to do business in or from within the Island, creating jobs and digitally educating its young people. The recently formed Bermuda Fintech Business Unit is a good example of where the Island should be heading, not just from a Fintech perspective, but from the perspective of digital transformation in its entirety.

The developed world is now in the midst of a Fourth Industrial Revolution (4iR), one which is changing the way we work and live: disruptive technology and trends such as robotics, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT), 3D printing, automation, chatbots, augmented and virtual reality, etc. Most significantly, connectivity – the 4iR is connecting our physical world with an increasingly digital one.

Of course, the inevitability of a new banking sector – what may still loosely be described as “Fintech banks” – is no different.

But when one says “Fintech banks” that shouldn’t be a category of bank which merely accepts crypto payments. “Fintech” is a far broader term. Such banks are ones which have or are embracing technologies such as chatbots, artificial intelligence, IoT, all which ultimately have one thing in common – providing a far better, more efficient customer experience than they are able to provide now. The existing banks in Bermuda are already using or investigating the use of Fintech.

If the Island wants to truly evolve and embrace a digital future, the future of job creation and its youth is not crypto, it is digital transformation and riding the wave of digital disruption. The requirement is to think outside of the box, away from just crypto, and focus on what is happening on a worldwide basis. From a financial perspective, that is a Fintech world which comprises so much more than one tends to think: digital asset issuers, digital asset exchanges, financial institutions utilizing digital platforms and new technologies.

While Bermuda must be nimble moving forward, it must ensure it takes its time to build its digital future. The creation of a crypto banking sector will hinge on the establishment of a broader Fintech sector with clients for those crypto banks to service; ensuring that all of the pieces of the puzzle which the Island is trying to put into place is done so carefully and correctly is going to be essential for the future of its proposed digital transformation.

Chris Garrod, February 2019

Apple, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Digital Transformation, Internet, Internet of Things, Technology

The Internet of Things is taking over your life.

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On February 9th, 2018, Apple suddenly woke up and finally released the HomePod.

What is it?  It plays music and, assuming your house and all its gadgets are connected using Apple’s HomeKit ecosystem, it will let you control them via Apple’s intelligent assistant, Siri. It can tell you what the weather or news will be, and it will answer (possibly) whatever other random questions you think of. It can turn off your lights or air-conditioning. And other…. stuff.

If you have an iPhone, you’ll know what Siri is – basically say “Hey Siri, play XYZ” and then pray what the results might be. There are other competitors to HomePod already, primarily Amazon’s Echo, which is powered by its Alexa voice assistant and Google Home which uses Google Assistant.

We live in an IoT world

The Internet of Things or IoT.  If you don’t really know what that means, I can assure you, it is revolutionizing your life and the way you live, even if you don’t realise it.

Do you have a smartphone? A fitness wearable such as a FitBit or an Apple Watch?  If so, you’re part of the Internet of Things, a term – perhaps badly named – which simply refers to the ability of devices which are connected over the internet, all contributing information from each other into some form of database for a particular reason.  

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Using a fitness wearable as a simple example. You wear it. It measures your steps, how many floors you’ve climbed, how much you sleep.  Depending on your activity or willingness to lose weight, you may log how much you eat each day into a program which is connected to your wearable’s smartphone app. You may run and have a special heart-rate strap if your wearable doesn’t already measure it. You may even have a Bluetooth connected scale which logs your weight and that information is then absorbed into the same database. That information can get posted online somewhere onto a social media network where you can compete with your friends. All of those devices talk to each other and combine into one database over the internet which has been specifically designed for basically one thing – improving and monitoring your health and fitness.  

So, the IoT.  Perhaps you’ll have a fridge that will let you know on your smartphone when you need to replace items which have spoiled and send an alert to you when you are grocery shopping. Wait, you don’t already?  Go back two years.

Companies in various industries are devoting a large amount of resources and money to invest in IoT technology, so much so that it has become mainstream in many sectors, such as manufacturing and transportation.

In essence, it is the process of digital transformation – that is to say, transforming the physical world into one big digital one.

The beauty of it all

Other than smart fridges and fitness trackers, there are so many new products and innovations, it is impossible to summarise them all here. Yes, people joke about smart toasters and coffee machines but the IoT certainly makes everyone’s lives genuinely smarter and easier.  

Right now, the smart home industry is the nexus of the industry and where it is all happening.  Companies across the globe are positioning themselves and trying to takeover this portion of the market.  Companies like Samsung, Lutron, Nest and Honeywell have been in the market for years, to be joined by groups such as Amazon, Google and now Apple, the latter three simply creating hubs/voice assistants which interface with actual automation systems (such as Lutron or Honeywell).  Smart homes can be programmed so that airconditioning can come on at certain times of the day to cool/heat your home before you get home or lighting to come on at certain times. Voice assistants can read the news to you in the morning or play music, change tracks, volume etc while driving.  And yes, coffee can be made for you.

But the Internet of Things isn’t limited to just home automation. It is worldwide connectivity.  People to people, people to things and, of course, things to things.

Waze, the driving app is a great example of the IoT.  As described on their website, Waze “is powered and used by drivers all over the world. Drivers connect to one another and work together to improve each others driving experience. As a community-based traffic and navigation app, Waze was created as a social navigation tool for private cars.”  It is a social app – you plug into the app where you are, where you are going and, using GPS and it being able to then work out your location, how fast or slow you are moving, etc, it will send out alerts regarding how heavy or light the traffic is to others travelling the same route.  It is smart, growing smarter the more people use it, has very few limitations and is exactly how to run an IoT business.

Smart Cities

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Dubai is a good example of where things may ultimately be heading.  Smart cities are those that in the future use the IoT effectively and efficiently to manage both assets and resources.  For example, the ability to improve a city’s energy use, its public transport, security, reduction of waste. With one of the highest penetration rates of smartphone usages in the world, Dubai’s ambition isn’t just to be a model smart city with government services being delivered to its citizens digitally, but its ambition is to be “the happiest city on earth” as a result of it. A public/private collaboration, it wishes to deliver over 1,000 “smart services” by 2021.   Interestingly, though not surprisingly, as part of that strategy, Dubai also aims to have the world’s first “blockchain-powered government”, one which entirely stores its data in its own secure, decentralised digital blockchain network.  

The future of IoT

So, we are increasingly becoming connected and eventually we will live in cities which are also digitally operated. Virtually endless opportunities are possible, many of which we have yet to comprend or consider.  

But there are challenges and the two main issues which the average person faces being part of a such a connected network are privacy and security.

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Although we are not quite yet heading towards some kind of Orwellian dystopia, one can see the pressures upon basic privacy and concerns regarding the security of information which IoT presents. Being part of it, you are basically giving up a lot of personal information to third parties. What TV shows you watch, your spending habits, how often you walk, what you weigh, are you married, do you have kids, what your potential income is…. the list goes on. The question to ask is that by giving up that information, will that data stay private and will companies ensure it is secure? By opening up your home and the ability to control your coffee machine from your bed, are you also inadvertently exposing your entire network to third party hackers, and all of your personal information?  The ways companies are able to securely and responsibly store the information they obtain from users are critical matters which must be dealt with in the IoT world.

But the excitement really is now coming to a head.  With the onset of the “fourth industrial revolution” and the seeping of IoT, artificial intelligence, automation, blockchain, robotics, big data and machine learning into both work and home, we are now well beyond the tipping point: digital transformation will be the driving force of our lives for years to come.

So the HomePod has just come out.  The Amazon Echo came out in 2015.  The Google Home in late 2016.  It feels like Apple is really late to a party.  But actually, they’re not, and that’s because the party is really just beginning.

Chris Garrod – February 14, 2018